


Experiment gone wrong

by AvaJones



Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe, Baskerville Research Facility, F/M, Falling In Love, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Love, M/M, Science Experiments, Sherlock - Freeform, Zombie, Zombielock, ginger nuts, sherlock bbc - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-29
Updated: 2017-03-29
Packaged: 2018-10-12 13:02:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10491507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvaJones/pseuds/AvaJones
Summary: John and Sherlock go out to Baskerville once again, although this time with Mycroft knowing about it.But while working the case of an experiment gone wrong, Sherlock needs to deal with sentiment, and that's hard.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This work is inspired by the Sherlock challenge "Experiment gone wrong" (http://sherlockchallenge.tumblr.com)  
> It´s just a quick scribble, nothing heavy, a quick, easy read. Nothing fancy. 
> 
> Happy reading!

"Stop calling me."  
Sherlock nagged when he finally picked up the phone after it rang for the sixth time straight until it went to voicemail.  
John smiled at him, sitting in the kitchen reading the morning paper.  
"Sherlock, I don't have time for your childish games. We need your help." The voice at the other end of the line said.  
"Oh? You need me? Why? What for? Do you have any credits left to ask for my help?"  
"Listen to me, little brother. We are in a crisis, and I don't have time for this. Will you just listen to me?"  
"Be quick about it, Mycroft. I do have things to do."  
"Is John there with you?"  
"Yes." Sherlock replied, looking at said roommate.  
"Then put me on speaker. This concerns him too."  
Sherlock frowned and did as he was told, still looking at John, who definitely saw some concern in Sherlock's face while he was putting his phone down on the coffee table.  
"You're on speaker now, John can hear you."  
John stood up and walked into the living room, so he could hear the voice of Mycroft coming from the phone better.  
"Do you remember the Baskerville Military Base?"  
"How could we not?" Sherlock said. John squeezed his eyes.  
"Why?" He asked Mycroft.  
"And the genetics labs there?"  
"You mean the labs where your crazy and spectacularly ignorant brother locked me in and made me hallucinate as an experiment? You can probably imagine that I do."  
"O please. I'm not ignorant." Sherlock said.  
"Yes you are. You can be bloody dense at times."  
"I really need to disagree with you about that, John. I can assure you that I was completely aware of my actions at that time."  
"Yes, I know. That's the whole problem, isn't it?"  
"GENTLEMEN!" The voice out the phone yelled into the room.  
"Can you two just stop nagging at each other for once?!"  
John and Sherlock grinned stupidly at each other.  
"Now. Listen to me. There has been an accident at this particular facility."  
"An accident?" Sherlock was paying attention to his brother now.  
"What kind of accident?"  
"There has been an experimental study going on, but there has been some... misfortunes." Mycroft said.  
John's eyes squeezed again.  
"Are you telling us that there was some experiment that went wrong?" He asked.  
They heard Mycroft sigh.  
"Yes."  
"Well, if this has something to do with a glow in the dark rabbit, you're to late. Already solved that one."  
"Sherlock, this is serious." Mycroft stated.  
"I am serious! John, tell him."  
"Does the name Bluebell say anything to you?" John said innocent. Sherlock giggled.  
"Can you two please behave like adults for a few minutes?! This is a very serious matter. Human lifes are at stake for god sake!"  
"I'm sorry Mycroft. What's this 'experiment gone wrong' about?"  
"Thank you, John. There had been a study done there to investigate the brain cells and the way they work. They were working on a medicine to help comatose patients to recover sooner and with less brain damage. But somehow there was an mutation in the developed medicine. They were testing it on apes, but one of the laboratory technicians got bitten by the animal and showed some... disturbing effects on this bite."  
Mycroft was silent.  
"What kind of disturbing effect's?"  
Sherlock finally asked.  
"Almost no brain activity, Non-communicative, Unemotional and the most disturbing of all, contagious. They seemed to have developed an taste for human flesh. And when they bite, they spread the virus."  
"O my god. They created zombies?!" John asked shocked. Sherlock rolled his eyes.  
"Don't be ridiculous, John. There's no such thing."  
"I have to disagree with you, brother mine. In this case, Dr. Watson may be right."  
"Nonsense. John and I will go there and investigate."  
"We will?"  
"Yes."  
"But Sherlock..."  
"John! It sounds interesting! "  
"Sherlock, please." Mycroft pleaded.  
"Don't interrupt, Mycroft. I'm trying to persuade John to see the logic in this. If his slow little brain can keep up, that is. "  
"Fuck you, Sherlock. It sounds dangerous." John said.  
"I does doesn't it? That never stopped you before. And besides, we've been inside this house for ever." He said, still looking at John, a grin on his face.  
John felt a blush coming on to his cheeks.  
"You just finished your last case! For Christ sake."  
"That was two days ago! I'm bored!"  
"Then get a hobby!"  
"O god..." Mycroft muttered.  
"Can you two hold it just a few minutes? I need to give you the details."  
"Just text me the details. I'll come back at you when I'm finished collecting data. Goodbye brother." Sherlock pushed the button of his phone with one hand and grinned at John.  
"That wasn't nice, Sherlock." John looked disproving. But Sherlock didn't care.  
"Zombies John! Zombies! We can go to that nice hotel we where in last time, and I already nicked Mycroft's all access card , so we don't have to wait."  
Sherlock strode towards his room.  
"What are you doing?!"  
John asked baffled.  
"Pack my bags."  
"Sherlock!"  
"What?!"  
"Can you please get off that pink cloud you're on and talk to me for a second?"  
Frowning, Sherlock turned around and looked at John.  
What was that on his face? Worry?  
"We are not going inside the facility."  
"What? Why not?"  
"Contagious biting zombies? We're not risking that."  
"But John..."  
"No. I'm serious, Sherlock. I don't want any of us harmed. So we'll go, have a look, stay behind barriers, solve the thing and go back to London. You understand?"  
"Yes John. I'm not a child. Now. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to pack my bag, I suggest you do the same."  
John fisted his hands.  
"I mean it, Sherlock. No Indiana Jones."  
"No what?"  
"You heard me."  
"What is Indiana Jones?"  
John shook his head.  
"You're unbelievable. I'm going to pack. When did you wanted to leave?"  
"As soon as possible."

●•●

"Would it be just like on television?"

Sherlock looked up from his phone tot the man on his right, steering the rental car over the road.  
"What?"  
"The zombies. I hope we can safe them."  
"Don't be an idiot. They're dead. And if they're not, we need to kill them, before they spread the virus."  
"They are humans, Sherlock."  
"So?"  
"A little compassion?"  
Sherlock snorted.  
"Never helped before. They are brain dead. There just so much we can do."  
His face went back to the screen of his phone.  
"Mycroft send me the files of the developed medicine. Some brain scans from the monkeys with it. It seems like the infection only starts after the subject wakes up from the coma. At first they seemed to get better, but in a few days the brain activity reduces, to go back to a minimal within one week after the first signs. That means that the infected subjects are aware of the change at first."  
"Are you talking about the monkey's?"  
“Not specifically. It seems that this order of events geld for all infected individuals. They want me to take a look at the medicine, and see if i can manage to help make an antidote.”  
“So your going to be the chemist instead of the Detective this time?”  
“No, John, both. We need to see if this mutation was inflicted on purpose, or that it was an accident. And i want to see if the virus has spread beyond the gates of the facility.”  
“God help us. And what did you have in mind for me? Or am i just going to be a bystander?”  
“Of course not, john. Mycroft may have only sent you with me to keep an eye on me. But you know i work better with you on my side and there might be patients for you to treat. And you need to make a blog about it, don't you?”  
John grinned.  
“Need your reassurance? That your still doing a good job?”  
“Shut up. Where almost there. Do you have your access card?”  
“Yeah. I like that it says Dr. John Watson for a change, instead of a name I don't know.”  
John turned the car onto the long road heading towards Baskerville.  
John showed his card at the gate and they could go through, parking their rental and got out to head towards the doors of the main building.  
They were greeted by Major Barrymore, who still looked angry at them for their last visit. And after a short briefing, they were send down. The lab where the virus had spread was in quarantine, and there was only one lab technician at work there. No one could go in, and she couldn't come out. All the other chemists working the medicine were infected, so she was on her own. The virus was dangerous, and it had to be controlled as soon as possible. It was out of the question to bring in other specialists. It had to be kept a secret. They were afraid that there would be a mass hysteria if the world heard of what had happened. (Something to do with a zombie apocalypse.)  
So no other specialists. Except for Sherlock Holmes.


	2. Chapter 2

Day 1

John and Sherlock entered the room that was adjoining the infected laboratory. There was a glass wall between this room and the lab with a door at the left side.  
The woman on the other side of the glass looked up and smiled at them.  
“Good afternoon gentlemen, Came to see the show?”  
She was short, even shorter than John, Dark blonde hair, hazel eyes, freckles, white lab coat.  
“Yes, hi, I'm Doctor Watson, and this is Sherlock Holmes. We were asked to help out.”  
“Have you been working here long?” Sherlock interrupted, no interest in formalities.  
“Good afternoon to you too, mister Holmes. My name is Ava Jones, working on this case for just one month. When the first mutations were taking place, they called me over to have a look. Never left since."  
“Can we come in?” Sherlock asked while scanning his access card against the scanner next to the door towards the room the woman was in. Getting a red signal every time he tried.  
“Hell no!”  
the sound of her voice made Sherlock look up, raising one eyebrow at her.  
“To dangerous. Everything here is contaminated. We cant risk the virus to spread.”  
“I don't see the problem, you're in there, aren't you?”  
“Yes, but I'm special. And besides, why take the risk? One in here is enough, we can talk through the intercom, seemed to work for the last five minutes.” She turned around and pulled a chair towards the window.

“Right, well boys, take a seat. I think we need to talk about this first.”

John turned around an went looking for two chairs. Sherlock frowned. Typical. He never seems to argue with orders from attractive woman. Sentiment? Hormones?

When Sherlock looked up at the woman at the other end of the glass he saw she was staring at him. A little frown on her forehead. Was she deducing him?  
“Well, miss Jones, fire away.”  
“Ava, please. I have the feeling we will see each other a lot these next days to come. So just call me Ava. I would offer you two tea or coffee, but...” She signed at the glass wall between them.  
“For obvious reasons, that's going to be a problem.”  
Sherlock blinked and stayed quiet, looking at her. She looked back. She didn't even flinch. Interesting.

“Since when are you in there?” John asked her, putting the chairs across of her at their side of the glass.  
“six weeks now. I'm really bored out of my mind, as you can understand. There's just so much I can do on my own."  
"Are there infected subjects with you?" Sherlock asked.  
"Yes. But they are carefully locked away now."  
"How many are there?"  
"Three human's and two apes."  
"So you're alone?"  
"If you don't count the infected, yes. Pretty dull. They don't make good conversation. Some of them make noises, but most of them are just quiet."  
Sherlock lifted one corner of his mouth in a small smile.  
What do you do inside there, than?"  
"Research. I have access to the patients. I have equipment here, I can take samples and study them. I'm in the middle of testing a new serum, to see if I can slow down the process."  
"And?"  
"Negative until now. My last attempt is in quarantine now, I can't work on it before tomorrow end of the morning."  
"Hmmm... What kind of equipment do you have there?"  
"Eh... Everything? I can take and analyze blood-samples, skin-tissue, brains samples, and there's even an MRI scanner in the back. But it's hard work on your own like this. No one to talk too, no one to ask questions or opinions. Although I have everything I need to research and work, I am feeling a bit sorry for myself that I can't have a proper bath or sleeping space or a good conversation. So you're a good distraction. But lets cut to the chase. How on earth are you two going to help me? I mean, a Doctor and a Consulting Detective? I need lab people. chemist's, brainiacs."  
Sherlock smirked and John rolled his eyes.  
"Well, Ava. Be careful what you wish for. He'll be everything you ever wanted, and more, probably."  
Ava looked at John, her face serious.  
"Is he? So gorgeous and smart, then? Sounds like the man of my dreams." She smirked.  
"You're forgetting annoying, but you'll learn." John smirked back.  
"Is he single? Or are you two together?"  
"O no. I'm not gay."  
"Is he?"  
"You do realize that I am sitting right next to you?"  
Sherlock interrupted annoyed.  
"Yes, pretty, we know. Now hush, I'm interrogating your friend about you."  
Sherlock opened his mouth and closed it again. John held back a giggle.  
"You two are going tot have a great time together."  
"Let's hope so. And what about you? You're not going to stay around here?"  
She asked John.  
"Me? No, like you said, I'm a doctor, not of much use for you here."  
John stood up from his seat.  
"You know what? I'm going to get our stuff to the hostel. I'll be back within a few hours. Sherlock?" He said while looking at his roommate. Sherlock didn't look up from his phone screen.  
"Hmmm?"  
"Please behave. And don't do anything stupid."  
Sherlock looked up, a bit affronted.  
"Don't worry, Doctor. I'll keep this door closed. And he can't do much harm outside, can he?" Ava said.  
"You'll be amazed." John replied. Sherlock rolled his eyes at them both, and started typing on his phone. John and Ava grinned stupidly at each other.  
"Right. I'm off. See you in a bit. Goodbye, miss Jones."  
"Goodbye, Doctor Watson."  
John walked out and closed the door behind him.  
"So. It's just you and me, then. Any requests?"  
Sherlock looked at her.  
"As a matter of fact, yes. Tell me everything about your work on this until now."

●•●

They talked. Ava explained where she was now, and told him everything she had found out about the virus. It confirmed the sheets of data Sherlock already had received from his brother. John came back and went off again to get Sherlock equipment he needed, so he could set up a lab at his side of the glass, with a computer that was linked to the machine's in the secured area. That way he could follow every test and experiment that Ava was doing. Every hour or so there was someone from the facility that came to check on them, but both Sherlock and Ava seemed to deep into their conversation to notice that. Deep in the night, with John fallen asleep in his chair, Ava started to yawn.  
"I need to sleep." She stated.  
Sherlock looked at his phone. It was almost three forty in the morning. He looked at his roommate slumped in the chair and a tiny smile played his lips for a second, gone before Ava was sure she had seen it.  
"Yes. So does John."  
Ava stood up from the chair behind the glass and stretched herself.  
"Well, this was the most fun I've had in weeks! Thank you Pretty. Come back tomorrow?"  
Sherlock stood up too.  
"Yes. Same place?"  
Ava grinned at him.  
"Ow, cheeky! I like that. I'll be here."  
Sherlock chuckled.  
"John!" He yelled.  
John shook up, looking around him, as if he couldn't remember where he was.  
"What?"  
"Let's go to the hostel so you can sleep in a real bed."  
John stood up from his chair and started to walk wobbly towards the door. Sherlock turned towards Ava again.  
"Good night, Ava."  
"Good night, Gorgeous."  
Sherlock followed John outside, closing the door behind him.  
John looked at his friend and saw the small smile on his face while he was talking amicable.  
"So, Ava is there alone at this moment, she did run several tests that I think where pretty clever. I won't bore you with all the details about them, you wouldn't understand them anyway. She even managed getting samples of infected brain-tissue from one of the subjects. She locked them up in a cage normally used for the bigger apes."  
When Sherlock noticed his stare he looked back at him.  
"What?"  
"You like her." He smirked.  
"Shut up, John."  
"You do! Christ!"  
"Leave it."  
"No. It's normal, Sherlock. Even for you. People like other people, that happens."  
"I don't like her, John. I don't 'like' people. You know that. But I do respect her work until now."  
"Right." John walked towards the car.  
"Come, genius, I want to go to sleep."


	3. Chapter 3

Day 2

The next morning Sherlock put John to work at the village. They needed to be sure that the virus really didn't leave the lab, despite Ava's confirmation, and John wanted to catch up with Henry Knight, the man who got them here three years ago.  
Sherlock took the rental and drove to Baskerville alone, eager to begin working this case. It was different from the cases he normally had, and he really liked the chemical aspect of it. When he entered the room of the lab he saw that Ava hadn't been sitting still. There was a table placed against the left part of the glass wall, with a computer screen on top of it.  
Smart. That way they could work and talk at the same time. Sherlock pushed the table at his side of the glass against it, so it looked like one big desk. This way they could see each others screens.

"Good morning gorgeous."  
He heard Ava say through the intercom. He looked up and gave her a small smile.  
"Good morning, Ava. Had a good night sleep?"  
"Not really, did you?"  
"A few hours, yes."  
"Good for you. Well, let's see. You should install skype or something on that computer. I don't have an intercom at the back, and when I'm working there it would be nice if you could join me in that way. My phone has good reach, even back there."  
They went to work together. Both at their own computer, asking questions and sharing thoughts about the matter. Somehow they made a good team. They sat at their desks for hours until a beep made Ava look up.  
"That's the tissue sample from last night. It must be finished. I'm going to check."  
Ava stood up and Sherlock stretched his back.  
"Wait. Try the connection on your phone. So I can look with you."  
Ava grinned and reached for her phone. Within ten seconds her face popped up on Sherlock computer screen. An even bigger grin appeared.  
"Hello handsome, good to see you. Alright. I told you I had a sample of brain tissue that I injected with the new serum? It has been in incubation for twenty hours. I hope I can see any difference."  
"Is it human tissue?"  
"Yes, from Clive. He's the easiest to handle, and he already had a big hole at the back of his head, so I can almost spoon it out." Ava said in the phone while walking towards the back of the lab. She opened the door of the machine and took the sample out with a pair of long tweezers. She sliced a small part from it and put it under her microscope.  
"If you log in on computer two seventeen, you'll get a live view of the microscope."  
Sherlock did as she said.  
"Yes. I can see it. Can you zoom in on the left? Where that little spot is?"  
"Here?"  
"Yes."  
"I showed you the footage of my last attempt. You see anything different from them?"  
"Yes. It seems to move.... different. The cells are ignoring each other instead of clutching together."  
"So, the infected cells are not reacting on the healthy ones."  
"They are not contaminating them."  
"Yet. Let's see how long it takes before they do. I got here the last three times. But it never seems to hold longer than a few hours. Keep the screen up, I'm coming back."  
Sherlock watched the screen intensely, seeing the cells react, and he looked up when Ava took her seat behind her own desk.  
"Well, what do you think?"  
She asked him.  
"I think we need to wait now. Any other pressing investigation's going on?"  
Ava shook her head.  
"No. Not right now. There are some other samples still in quarantine, but we need to wait for a few hours before those are ready to look into."  
Together they watched their screens.  
"I googled you last night." Ava said.  
Sherlock raised an eyebrow.  
"And?"  
"John's a good writer. Loved his blog. You're website was a bit more... clinical. Still interesting though. Why did you take down the two hundred fifty three different types of ashes? Sounded interesting."  
Sherlock smirked.  
"That's a first."  
"Is it? Well, glad to be your first there." She said smiling, and Sherlock smiled back.  
"Was that why you couldn't sleep last night?"  
"No. I had to kill of one of the monkeys. They were starting to eat each other. Making a disgusting mess and a lot of noise. So. One monkey and three humans left. God. I could use a cigarette right now."  
"Me too."  
"You smoke? God, you're getting better and better."  
Sherlock felt his cheeks blush a bit and turned his face away from her.  
"Yes." He said.  
"And I'm going to do that right now, if you don't mind."  
He got up from his desk chair and walked towards his coat, grabbing his pack out of his pocket.

"Ehm, Sherlock? You wouldn't have a spare on you? Do you?"  
"You want one?"  
"That would be the light of my day! Or week, actually."  
"But your'e in quarantine. There's no way to get one to you."  
"Don't be daft, gorgeous. How do you think they feed me? There is a small hatch at your left. When you open it, you can put something inside. After you closed it, I can open it on my side. The air will be cleaned and filtered before you can open it again. But it's a one way thing. I can't send anything out."  
Sherlock was already heading towards the mentioned hatch, and put in his whole pack minus one and a lighter. He studied the small space.  
"I believe you're lean, but not that lean, pretty. It will never fit. You can't come inside through there."  
"You think?"  
"You're stubborn, aren't you?"  
He closed the door and he could hear it lock. Ava opened the other side, took the pack out, and held it against her nose, inhaling deeply.  
"Has anyone ever tell you that you're an angel?"  
Sherlock laughed.  
"Well, once, but that was said by a psychopath who was trying to make me kill myself. Most people can't stand me, actually."  
"Don't they? What about John?" Ava said while lighting a cigarette. Sherlock ignored her.  
"We have to wait for at least two hours before we can go further. Stay. Smoke with me, and tell me about yourself and the psychopath that thought you were an angel."  
Sherlock sat down and did as she asked.

●•●

They talked for hours. About themselves, about the stupid things they had done in their lives, about their jobs, their favourite food and wines, and it felt as if they had known each other for years.  
They studied the samples again, looked at the cells underneath the microscope, (still not pairing, which was good) and they even had dinner together. When John entered the room they were both sitting with their noses against their screens, discussing the best way to inject the subjects.  
"Why aren't you answering your phone?" John asked while closing the door behind him. He put his nose in the air an sniffed.  
"Sherlock Holmes, have you been smoking?!"  
Sherlock rolled his eyes for Ava to see and turned his desk chair around.  
"Of course not. Don't be stupid, John. This is a laboratory. What do you think of me?"  
"That your a stubborn bastard that doesn't follow rules?"  
Ava laughed and Sherlock grinned back.  
"How did you even get here? I took the car."  
"I borrowed one from the owners of the hostel. I was bloody worried, not hearing anything from you."  
"I'm sorry John. It's my fault. I got him focusing on the work here, and we lost track of time. I need to get some rest anyway. We can work further tomorrow."  
"I'm not tired."  
"But I am, and knowing that you'll be sitting here doing god knows what is distracting. So you need to go with John. Go and enjoy the rest of your evening. Drink one on me, okay?"  
Sherlock looked a bit piqued at her but he got up and went for his coat. John watched the scene in front of him. Sherlock wasn't the man to take orders from anyone. But he gave her the same look as he have John when he gave into something that John had said. John looked back at the woman behind the glass. She was getting her things together and glanced one last time on her screen to see what the cells were doing and she looked up at John, a sad smile on her face.  
"I'll guess I see you tomorrow?" Sherlock asked while putting on his coat.  
"I'll be waiting for you, gorgeous. Have a good night. And you too, John."  
"Thank you, Ava. See you."  
"Night."


	4. Chapter 4

Day four

"You're late."  
"Good morning to you too."  
"I've been waiting for you all morning. Had some tests running and I hoped I could share the results with someone. But instead of telling my attractive colleague I had to ramble about it to Beth."  
"Beth?"  
"Yes. She's strapped in the back. She was the last one to turn before you showed up. No conversation skills, that one. She does moan a lot."  
"Hmmm... You prefer my presence above that of an brain dead zombie?"  
"Yeah...Must be that ridiculous mop of curls you have, gorgeous. You take a seat and go ahead looking at the last test results, I'm going to get coffee. Back in a minute."

Ava rushed out of sight, and Sherlock took the opportunity to place his purchased gift for her into the hatch. He felt a bit silly of doing so. It was nothing he had done before. But when she came back, he could see why he did it. This woman was interesting, smart, had a quick mind and he felt some sort of connection.  
"Well? What do you think?"  
Sherlock turned towards the screen on the desk, and saw the life stream from the microscope.  
"It's still the same."  
"Yes! It's amazing, isn't it? It's the best result I've had since this mess started! I never managed to get it stable for more than four hours. And this one is stable for almost twenty two hours now."  
"And the others?"  
"Two of them were useless, but it seems that we managed to make something that shuts them off for a few hours."  
"Like in a sleep like state?"  
"Exactly. Open the exel-sheet on the desktop of computer seven six eight. You can see the results there."  
Sherlock did as she said, and looked into the tables and statistics in the document.  
"Did you try it on one of the subjects?"  
"Not yet. Like I said, I was waiting for you, silly. Oh, Shit, that's hot!"  
Sherlock looked up and could just see her putting down her mug with coffee.  
"Burned your tongue?"  
"Shut up."  
Sherlock smiled at the insult.  
"You know what? I'm going to inject one of the subjects with the sedative. Want to see?"  
"Of course."  
"Turn on your connection, then."  
Ava got her phone and connected it with Sherlock's computer.  
"There we go."

She walked out of sight, talking into the phone so he could see her face.  
"We conformed yesterday that it has to be injected into the bloodstream, yes?"  
"We did."  
"Okay, so I have made an ampule with hopefully enough dose to sedate my friend Beth."  
Ava showed the syringe with the ampule already inserted.  
"What's that sound in the back?" Sherlock asked. Ava's voice lost a bit of the natural lightheartedness Sherlock was getting accused to.  
"That's Beth. You haven't seen any footage of the infected, did you?"  
"No, I haven't."  
"Than brace yourself it's not a pretty sight."  
The further Ava walked, the harder the sounds became. It was horrible. It sounded like a dying animal, deep moans and a gurgling sound. When Beth came into picture, Sherlock frowned and watched with his mouth a bit open. What once had been a woman, was now reduced to an empty shell. She was filthy. Her skin looked as if it was decomposing and the eyes were empty.  
"This makes you quiet doesn't it? She has a husband and three children outside the facility. We told them that she had died. They buried an empty casket. It's sad. She was a great neuroscientist, I learned a lot from her in the past, and I was looking forward to work with her here. But we only got a full week before she got bitten."  
Ava pressed the needle against the skin, and it went through easily. She emptied the syringe and pulled the needle carefully back out.  
Beth screamed and moaned and she tried to get closer to Ava, only to be retained by the cuffs she was in.  
But she kept fighting, her mouth opening and closing as if she tried to bite at the woman in front of her, but after two minutes, the movements became weaker.  
"It works..." Ava whispered.  
"It seems that it does, yes. That's a great break though. How long will it work?"  
"No idea. But this is the only way to find out, isn't it?"  
I'm coming back to you, I just... I just need a moment, okay?"  
Before Sherlock could answer, she had disconnected.

Sherlock watched the black screen in front of him for a few seconds, before clicking it down, and conducted himself back into the sheets with statistics.  
"I believe it will last for at least eight hours. Did you give the dose that you filled in here?" He asked when Ava entered the room again.  
She sat down in her chair and picked up her cup of coffee again, taking a careful sip.  
"Correct again, gorgeous. It will be pleasant to sleep a night without her screaming in the back."  
Sherlock just nodded at that. Ava bent forward and took the pack of cigarettes from the desk. She lit one.  
"That reminds me." Sherlock said.  
"I put something in the hatch for you."  
"You did?" Ava said, the lightheartedness back in her voice. She got up from her chair and opened the hatch. She took the bag out and brought it with her to the desk.  
Inside the bag there was a bottle of wine they had discussed the previous evening, a full pack of cigarettes, and a package with butterscotch cookies she told him she liked so much.  
"Sherlock! This is amazing! Wow! Thank you. I'm getting pissed tonight and I'll eat myself nauseous on those cookies. You want to watch?" She grinned at him.  
"You're quite a little devil, aren't you?" Sherlock said laughing.  
A red signal flashed on both their screens, and they immediately turned their faces towards it.  
"It seems like the infected cells are starting to feed themselves on the healthy ones again." Sherlock said, looking at the stream from the microscope.  
"God damned! Why can't we just find it?! Why!? We were so close! Fuck!"  
Ava threw the ashtray she had on her desk across the room.  
"Fuck!" She yelled and took a big inhale from her cigarette.  
"God, I'm sorry. But I'm so done with this."  
"I can related to that. Did you have the other serum ready? The one we made up yesterday?"  
"Yes, I already injected it in a piece of tissue, but it's to early to see the results yet."  
"Fortunately, I've been working on some things myself. You can open the spreadsheet on my computer."  
Ava did as he said.  
"Christ! Don't you sleep? This must have taken you all night."  
"Mostly, yes. I managed to sleep some hours."  
"Sleep is for the weak? God, look at this! You're brilliant! Let's work this out further, shall we, handsome?"

Day seven

They worked all day together again. Whenever they took a break, they talked and laughed, smoked and ate. John came in around dinner time, and he had brought some take away Chinese with him. Ava was almost jumping from excitement. And when she pulled open the bottle of wine, Sherlock did the same with the bottle he had brought for himself and John.  
The three of them ate, laughed and drank, telling each other big stories, making fun of Sherlock ("No way! Did he really say that?") Talking about their cases ("Really? You sure you didn't made it up?") and about their every day life. (A real skull Why?) When Sherlock went out to smoke and get some fresh air, Ava poured herself another wine.  
"God I'm pissed. It has been weeks since I had any alcohol, let alone wine like this."  
John grinned at her.  
"How are you holding up?"  
"Fine."  
John laughed.  
"Christ. You even sound like him!"  
Ava smiled at him.  
"I like him." She said with a small slur in her voice.  
"You do?"  
"Yes. Almost as much as you do. He's different. He's bloody smart, funny and pretty. What's not to like?"  
John had no idea how to reply to that.

●•●

Sherlock and John left early that night, after Ava stated that they all needed a long night sleep.  
And when John and Sherlock were back in the hostel, they went to the bar to talk and drink together, until John decided they had enough, and managed to get Sherlock with him upstairs, towards their shared bedroom.  
"Now I'm pissed." John said, lying on his back on his bed, still fully dressed, while Sherlock was trying to get his pyjamas on.  
"It's nice that you don't need me much this time. It feels like vacation. I like it." John turned his head towards his struggling roommate, giggling at the sight. But suddenly John turned serious.  
"Sherlock. I need to ask you something."  
Sherlock looked up from getting his head through one of the holes of his pyjamas, a bit confused, hearing the change of tone in John's voice.  
"What is it, John? Is there something wrong?" He asked, blinking his eyes a few times.  
"No, no. At least, I don't think so. But... you like her, don't you?"  
Sherlock stopped pulling on his pyjama and looked at his friend.  
"Why do you say that?"  
"I've never seen you like this. All talking and laughing while on a case. And you even bought her her favourite wine. Sherlock, are you falling for her?"  
Sherlock felt confused. How could John have noticed that? What about John? How could he fall for someone when the other was right next to him?  
"Sherlock? Are you alright?"  
"I... I don't know. John. I don't... You know. Sentiment."  
John felt a splint of pain, not being the focus of this man's attention at this matter. But he pushed it back before giving himself away.  
"No need to panic, Sherlock. You're human, after all. Just... be careful with your heart, okay?"  
"Are you drunk?"  
"A bit. Not as much as you are. Just promise me that you'll look after yourself, okay?"  
"Of course, John."


	5. Chapter 5

Day nine

"Beth's jaw broke off."  
"Show me."  
Ava walked into the back with her phone.  
"Just be happy you can't smell this."  
Ava turned the camera on her phone towards Beth, to show Sherlock what happened.  
"How?"  
"Daniel got to close and ripped it off. He managed to chew off his hand, or, I think he did. That way he got loose. I had to put him down last night."  
"With the sedative?"  
"No, couldn't get close enough. I shot him."  
"So only Beth and Clive remain."  
"Don't forget Samuel."  
"That's a monkey, Ava."  
"Aren't we all? But no. With that brain activity they could be just as well be goldfish, pretty. They're all just subjects now. I can't see them as humans anymore. They are way beyond that state."  
Ava turned around to the cage holding Samuel.  
"This is stupid. I'm going to kill of one of my remaining three subjects."  
The monkey screamed when Ava entered the needle in its arm. The sedative made the monkey go quit, and within a few minutes it appeared dead.  
"I'll just check in the morning if he's still dead. Coming back to you now."  
Sherlock smiled at the sight of the woman appearing in sight.  
"You killed him."  
She looked disapproving at the smile he had on his face.  
"I did."  
She sighed.  
"Stupid, isn't it? I still have the feeling that I need to do something for them, feed them or give them some sort of comfort. But I know I wouldn't matter."  
Sherlock just shrugged. Ava sight again and reached for the cigarettes.  
"You need to buy me a new pack." She said while getting one out.  
"I like you."  
Ava looked up at him.  
"Sherlock, don't."  
"I really like you, little devil."  
"No. You shouldn't. I'm just going to break your heart. I'm sorry, Sherlock."  
Ava pushed the seat back and stood up.  
"I can't, gorgeous. I'm going back to work."  
And with that Ava walked out.

Day ten

They hadn't had any success creating something that kept stable. Every cure, medicine or serum they developed worked for a few hours and then only seemed to speed up the process. It was like fighting a losing battle, and they both knew it.

Ava and Sherlock had just finished their dinner together. He brought another bottle of wine and they were drinking and smoking together, talking about their favourite music before there was a long silence between them.  
"How long?" He asked her.  
Ava feigned ignorance.  
"Sorry?"  
"Don't be an idiot. You know what I mean."  
"Twelve days."  
Sherlock stared at her.  
"Twelve days." He repeated.  
"Twelve fucking days. I got scratched by Daniel. That's when I called for help. And on the thirth day, you walked through that door."  
"I did."  
"It's not fair."  
"Life's not fair."  
"The medication slows it down. And like I said, it wasn't a bite, just a scratch."  
"Do they know?" Sherlock asked, looking up.  
"No. Otherwise they will lock me up with the others and never look for a solution for this."  
There was a loud noise behind her. Ava shook up and turned around.  
Sherlock stood up and his mouth fell open.  
It was the first time he saw one of the brain dead in real life. And the one once called Clive was walking into the room.  
"Fuck." Ava hissed.  
"Try to distract him, I'm going to get the sedative."  
She soundly retreated back against the wall, while Sherlock was banging on the glass. It worked. Clive staggered towards him, and pressed his face against the glass.

Sherlock studied him. The skin was in a state of disintegration, the teeth black, eyes white, and he was scraping his half hands across the glass, trying to get to Sherlock. It was a horrific, monstrous sight. And Sherlock felt a spike of fear. If the virus got out it would be a disaster. He had done his research. There wasn't anything like this in the world, and out of curiosity he had seen some episodes of different television series and some movies. Most of them were complete nonsense, but there was one series that had established an sort of realistic view of what would happen to the world when something like that really happened. And it wasn't something to look out for. The man in front of him suddenly pressed himself harder to the glass, screaming. Sherlock could see Ava behind him with ano empty syringe in her hand. Clive turned around and swung an arm at her. Ava let herself fall back, but the remaining fingernails scratched her cheek. Clive took two steps towards her, and fell down.  
"Ava!"  
"Fuck."  
Ava stood up and stroke her fingers across her cheek.  
"Damned." She cursed under her breath, looking at the blood on her fingers.

Day eleven

"You need to call your brother."  
"My brother?"  
"Yes. To tell him that everything is going according plan."  
Sherlock frowned.  
"Why do you need my brother? What do you know that I don't?"  
Ava sight. The scratch on her cheek wasn't healing. There was a dark spot forming around it, and it itched. She put her hand down, realising that she was scratching it.  
"I haven't told you everything yet. I'm sorry. I never thought it would be relevant."  
"What do you mean?"  
"I'm MI5-ish. Your brother was the one who sent me here."  
"MI5?"  
"Ish. Don't be daft, handsome. I told you I was special? I am. He sent me here to find out about this virus, and to help create an antidote."  
"You want me to call him and tell him that everything is under control? He'll know something is up when I call him. And things are definitely not under control, Ava." Sherlock said angrily.

The door behind Sherlock opened and John walked in.  
"Hello Ava."  
"Hi John."  
"O god. What happened?"  
John rushed towards the glass and looked at the spot on her cheek. Sherlock swallowed. He stood up and grabbed his phone.  
"I'm going to make a call." He informed John while leaving the room with big steps. He slammed the door behind him, and John flinched at it.  
"Moron...." He mumbled. He looked at the woman behind the glass and took a seat in Sherlock's abandoned chair.  
"So, here we are."  
"You can say that, yes."  
"Who's he calling?"  
"Mycroft."  
"He told you about his brother?"  
"Yes. But I've known Mycroft for years now. Although I call him Mister Holmes."  
"So You work for the government? You're one of his agents?"  
Ava smiled.  
"Sherlock told me that you were clever."  
John gave her a half smile.  
"What happened with your cheek?"  
"I got scratched."  
"By an infected?"  
"Yes."  
"O god. You don't have an antidote yet."  
"I know. The serum helps slowing the infection down."  
"When did it happen? Sherlock didn't tell me."  
"I'm not surprised, really. But this one happened two days ago." Ava said, pointing to her cheek. Then she rolled up her sleeve, showing a bandaged arm underneath. She started to get the bandage off.  
"This one, on the other hand, happened thirteen days ago."  
Underneath the bandage John could see discolouring of the skin, open wounds that didn't really seemed to bleed, and a beginning of gangrene.  
"Jesus..."  
"It doesn't hurt, much. The skin is dead, and somehow I still have function in this arm. Although I can feel the strength getting less."  
John's mouth was open, and Ava could see his eyes getting watery.  
"How... how long before..."  
"Two days, three tops, I think."  
"Bloody hell...Does he know?"  
"Yes."  
"I'm so sorry I can't do anything for you. I'm sorry."  
"Don't be, John. No one can fix this. I wanted it to be different too. But it isn't. I do want to ask you something. Will you look after him? He needs that. He needs you. Although he will never admit that he does by himself. He's vulnerable, breakable. His heart bigger than he realize's himself. And if I listened good enough to hear the things he didn't say, then you are the one that he needs the most. You are the one that keeps him human. Will you keep him sane, John?"  
"Of course. Of course I will do that."  
"You really do have a big heart. Sherlock told me. He talks about you all the time. You know that?"  
"He does?"  
"Yeah. He might say that he likes me, but what about you? Think about that, John."  
John frowned at the woman behind the glass.  
"Listen and try to hear the things he doesn't say to you, Then you'll understand what I mean." She explained. with a small smile on her face.


	6. Chapter 6

Day thirteen

"Good morning gorgeous."  
"You don't look so well."  
"I'm fine."  
Sherlock sighed and hang his coat.  
Ava sat down on the edge of her desk, her shoulder leaning against the glass.  
"I'm running a slight fever."  
"Did you take the serum?"  
"Of course. We have work to do, don't we?"  
Sherlock sat down on his own desk, his face towards the glass. He looked at her, a small sad smile on his face. He put his hand against the glass. After a few seconds, Ava did the same.  
"Your hands are big."  
"Your hands are small."  
Ava sighed.  
"I'm dying. I'm bloody dying and then you find me."  
"Ava..."  
"I'm sorry, Sherlock. Forget that I said that. I'm sorry."  
Tears welled up in Ava's eyes, looking at the man on the other side of the glass.  
"Why now? Why have we never bumped into each other on the streets?"  
"London is a crowded city, little devil." He said to her.  
"It's stupid." Ava replied.  
"At least we got this time together."  
"Separated by a two inch glass wall, unable to feel your fingers touching mine, I even don't know how your voice sounds in real life, without an intercom or a phone line in between. And we never will."  
"Don't say that."  
"It's true. You know it as well as I do. There is no antidote. I can feel my body giving up, I have moments I can't think properly."  
"We're still working on a medicine. Don't give up yet."  
"No, Sherlock. Don't give it hope. The odds are against us. I'm turning in some brain dead flesh eating thing and I can't stop it."  
"Please, Ava. Try. For me."  
"Stop it. You need to think realistic. You know there is no other way. I'm going to do it tonight."  
"But you said you had a plan. What about that?"  
"I still do, handsome."

Ava pulled her hand away from the glass and jumped off the desk.  
"You are already part of it."  
"Am I?"  
"Yes. Is your brother still thinking that we are on track?"  
"Yes."  
"Good. Because you and me are going to make sure that this will never fall into his hands, or in anybody else's."  
"You're going to trick my brother?"  
"Yes."  
"Have I told you I liked you already?"  
Ava grinned.  
"Yes."  
"So, what's your plan, then, little devil?"  
Sherlock grinned back at her.  
"First, I'll make sure none of the subjects are alive, which is only Beth and then, you and me are going to destroy everything about this failed experiment. All the files, all the samples, everything. I want to prevent this becoming some sort of biological weapon at any costs. No one can ever use it, not even bloody England. And you, my dear, are going to help me do it."  
Sherlock laughed a deep rumble.  
"You are a special woman, Ava Jones."  
"Told you."

They both got to work. Sherlock was deleting everything from the computers he could reach from his own, while Ava went down to give Beth her lethal dose of sedative. Then she started to gather every sample she had down there. They were linked to each other through the connection the whole time.  
"Is John coming today?"  
"Yes. He would be here around dinner."  
"Good. Let's have a feast tonight. Good wine, good food and good company."  
"I'll call him to make sure that he brings all of that. Any requests?"  
"Definitely. Ask him to bring some Thai, and a bottle of red wine, Malbec, if he can find it . Ow! And some Ginger nuts."  
"Ginger nuts? I love ginger nuts!"  
"You do?"  
"Yes."  
Ava laughed.  
"Christ! You are a marvel, Sherlock Holmes."  
Sherlock chuckled.  
"Come back up, so we can smoke."  
"Okay, almost finished. Just a few minutes."

●•●

"How's your fever?"  
Ava blew out the smoke.  
"Steady. It's not getting worse."  
"Have you taken the serum?"  
Ava kept silent.  
"Ava, have you taken the serum?"  
"No."  
"No?! You need to take the serum, Ava."  
"No."  
Sherlock shoved his chair back and stood up to go pace through the room.  
Ava watched.  
"You don't expect me to end up like Beth or Clive or Daniel? Do you? There's nothing else we can do, gorgeous. And I like to keep some of my dignity before I die."  
"You can't die."  
Ava snorted and shook her head.  
"You know as well as I do that when the serum is still in my system, the sedative won't do it's work. And I'll be damned to shoot myself."  
"You're not going to shoot yourself."  
"Exactly. You see my point?"  
"I don't want you to die, Ava."  
"I don't want too, either."

John pushed the door open and Sherlock stopped pacing.  
"Dinner." John said, putting the Thai down onto Sherlock's desk.  
"How are you feeling?" John asked Ava. She smiled at him.  
"Alive, I guess. Thank you for all your effort, John. I really appreciate it. God, I love Thai!"  
"And I bought the wine you asked."  
"Can I keep you?" Ava smirked, and added when she saw Sherlock's face;  
"What? Don't be jealous, Pretty. You'll always be our number one. And we need John, don't we? Look where it got us without him. And besides, if you can have both of us, why can't I? I promise I'll share him, gorgeous."  
John laughed and unpacked the food.  
"You're a bloody flirt, Ava Jones." He said chuckling.  
"You two start, I'm just going to get some fresh air. Be back in ten."  
Sherlock bite off his words and without looking back, he walked out. John sighed.  
"Does he do that a lot?"  
"Sherlock? Getting fresh air?"  
"No, running away from his feelings."  
"Most of the time he denies having them."  
"Why doesn't that surprise me?"  
"Did you get into a fight?"  
"Sort of."

John gave her a half smile.  
"Well, what would you like to eat first?"  
"Curry of course. And can you hand me one of the bottles of great wine you bought? That would be splendid."  
John put the requested food and drink in the hatch before he took a seat and started putting food on his own plate.  
"Ava settled herself in her chair with the plate Thai on her lap and poured herself a glass of wine. She took a sip.  
"This is heaven." She said, her eyes closed.  
"You know..." Ava said before taking a bite of Thai.  
"I meant what I said the other day."  
She followed with her mouth full.  
"Sorry?"  
Ava swallowed.  
"He needs you. He needs you more than he realize's. And you need him."  
"I'm not sure if I know where you are going with this."  
"I'm not stupid, John. I see how you look at him."  
John's cheeks turned red.  
"But... I... you..."  
Ava chuckled.  
"Don't be scared, John. Your secret is safe with me. Although our Pretty boy is to dumb to see it, it doesn't say that we all are. I know you're in love with him. You know I'm falling for him, but I'm going to be dead within a few hours. So you don't have to worry about that."  
"Don't... don't say that, Ava."  
"But it's true. Don't let me get in your way of happiness, John. If it wasn't for my... condition, you wouldn't have stand a chance, of course."  
She replied, giving him a wink.  
John closed his mouth and shook his head, but Ava wasn't finished yet.  
"He might like me, but he loves you you know. A lot. He never shuts up about you. And when he talks about you his eyes begin to sparkle, he sometimes even flushes or gets stuck for words. So, if you want him in your life, do something about it."  
"You look like him."  
"He's not a flirt."  
"No, but you are both too smart for your own good. And you both are people readers. And you put other things above yourself, while being clinical about it."  
"True. But there is nothing else I can do, can I? Just... follow your heart, John. Make him happy."

They ate and talked. Sherlock joined them again after a few minutes, getting a look from John, which he ignored, and after dinner they talked and drank some more.  
"Right. I think I'm going back to the hostel. Give you two some time." John stood up and smiled a bit at Ava.  
"I... Ehm. Thank you, Ava. Thank you for our conversations and your wise words. I'll do something with them, I promise. Thank you. It was good to get to know you. Well... good luck, I guess."  
"You're cute, John Watson. You're a good man. Use that big heart of yours. Be happy. I'm glad I got to know you, too, and I wish you all the best."  
"Goodbye, Ava."  
"Goodbye, John."  
John walked towards the door, stopping behind Sherlock, putting his hand on the man's shoulder. After a few seconds, Sherlock put his own hand on top of it, squeezing it shortly, before letting go. Without a word, John left.


	7. Chapter 7

"So. It's just you and me, then. Come, pass me some Ginger nuts, Pretty, so we can enjoy them together."  
Sherlock looked at her and stood up to do as she asked. When they were both sitting again, Ava gave him a look.  
"You're quiet."  
"I haven't got much to say."  
"Why are you sulking? Please, don't do that on my last night. I would like to enjoy this."  
"How are you feeling?"  
"Like shit. The fever is getting worse. I don't think I can manage this much longer."  
"How are you planning to do this?"  
He asked, his voice soft. Ava put another cookie in her mouth and poured it down with a big gulp of wine.  
"That was disgusting." Sherlock couldn't suppress a chuckle. Ava grinned at him.  
"I'm going to take the sedative. It will take about ten minutes before I'm gone, and then, gorgeous, you are going to press the red button."  
"Red button?"  
"Yeah. Matter of speech. I installed a program on your desktop that will set this whole lab on fire."  
"You are planning to burn it down?!" Sherlock asked her unbelievably. The grin on her face only got bigger.  
"Hell yes. I'm going out with a bang and I'm taking everything to do with this virus with me. You press the button and then you have about ten minutes to tell everyone to get out."  
"You were right. You really are special, Ava."  
"Thank you, pretty. Now, do you have any more of those cookies?"

●•●

"I wish we had met some other time."  
Sherlock said. He sat in the desk, the left side of his head leaning against the glass.  
"Me too." Ava replied, mirroring his posture.  
"What a difference it would have been if we met somewhere in London. I don't know, like bumping into each other in the streets." She continued, inhaling from her cigarette.  
"Hmmm... I probably would have asked you to come and live with me and John."  
"Would you?"  
"Yes. You'd love Bakerstreet. It's cozy. We have a skull on the mantelpiece and a smiley painted in the wall."  
"Do you really keep body parts in the fridge?"  
"Yes. Did John tell you that?"  
"He did. He smiled about it when he told me."  
Sherlock smiled at that.  
"You would have loved it. We could have solved crimes together."  
"That's John's job."  
"Well, you could come when he was busy."  
"Busy?"  
"Yeah... working. Or dating dull woman."  
Ava chuckled with him.  
"You love him, don't you?"  
Sherlock kept quiet. Inhaling from his cigarette and blowing out the smoke.  
"I told you I liked you. I normally don't like people, little devil."  
"I know. But you like him too, right?"  
"Not like I like you."  
"That because I'm a pretty girl and I'm smart. And because I'm behind glass. It's safe for you to like me. You've got nothing to lose."  
"That's not true."  
"Yes it is. You've got something to lose with John. You're afraid he'll break your heart. You're afraid he leaves you. He's your best friend. You like him. You like him even more than you like me."  
"He's not gay."  
"Neither are you."  
"Who says that?"  
"You told me you liked me."  
"Maybe you're my exception."  
"No, I don't think I am. But you might be his."  
Sherlock put his cigarette out.  
"I... I'm not used to this kind of feelings."  
"I know. But you should stop acting like a coward and give it a try. You two are good together. I don't even think that Sherlock Holmes and Ava Jones is a better combination than Sherlock Holmes and John Watson will be. You love him, Sherlock. Don't let that go to waste."  
Ava started coughing. Her hand in front of her mouth. Looking like she was in pain.  
"Fuck." She said, looking at her hand. It was red with blood.  
"Sherlock? I think it's time."

●•●

Ava sat in the chair at her desk, the syringe in her hand.  
"Damned. This is it. It feels very final."  
"It is very final."  
"I know."  
"I would have fallen in love with you, you know that?" He said.  
"I do."  
"Maybe I already have."  
"Do you? I'm flattered."  
Sherlock gave her an eye roll while pulling the corner of his mouth up.  
"Shut up." He said teasing.  
Ava smiled back at him, getting the cap of the needle.  
"Ready?"  
"Ready."

●•●

"Have I told you I like you, too?" Ava said between two shallow breaths.  
"You just did."  
"Hmmm... Good answer. I might have fallen in love with you too, gorgeous."  
Ava opened her eyes to look at him.  
"You are a beautiful human being. You know that, right?"  
"Thank you."  
"No thank you, Sherlock Holmes. Thank you for giving me these last two weeks. They were amazing."  
Tears were falling from her eyes now, and Sherlock swallowed.  
"I'm so sorry Ava. I wished there was another way."  
"Me too, Pretty."  
"I'll miss you." He said, tears rolling down his own cheeks too.  
"I'll miss you too. But who knows. Maybe we'll meet in another life."  
Ava closed her eyes again, her speaking went slower and she started to mumble.  
"Promise me you'll tell him?"  
"I promise."  
"Will you live a happy life for me?"  
"I will."  
"Will you remember me when you're happily together with him?"  
"I will always remember you, little devil."  
"Good. I'll always remember you, too." Goodbye, gorgeous."  
"Goodbye, little devil."  
Ava's breathing became even shallower until it stopped completely.  
She was gone.  
Sherlock didn't even try to hold back his tears. Instead, he turned towards the screen in front of him, his vision a bit blurry. He did as she asked. He pressed the combination she had told him to ignite the fire.  
Sherlock stood up grabbed his coat and walked back to the glass. He put his hand against it.  
"You really were something special, Ava."  
And with that words he turned around, seeing the flames licking at the back of the lab. Time to evacuate the facility.

●•●

"Sherlock?" John asked when he heard the door of the room opening.  
John stood up from his bed on which he had been lying, trying to read, but his mind to far away. The room was barely lit, but John could see the redness of the detective's eyes.  
"There was a fire. I've been wandering in the smoke." Sherlock said when he noticed John's stare. He pulled his coat off and dropped it in the nearest chair.  
"You're an idiot, Sherlock." John replied in a soft voice.  
Sherlock looked his friend in the eyes and all he could see was worry and care. He felt the tears coming up again and tried to fight them back.  
"Don't." John just said.  
He walked towards him and swung his arm around him. Within seconds Sherlock was slumped against him, crying freely. Clenching his hands on John's back.  
After a few minutes he felt like he could talk again.  
"I'm sorry, John." He whispered with a hoarse voice into John's neck.  
"Me too, Sherlock. Me too." He said in a soft tone, his hands stroking Sherlock's back.  
"She was special."  
"She was."  
"Special like you."  
John was silent, not sure how to reply to that.  
"I'm sorry John. For everything."  
"I don't understand."  
"Of course not. You're an idiot." Sherlock sniffed into John's neck.  
Despite his own tears, John felt a small smile coming onto his face.  
"I know." He said, stroking the dark curls now. Sherlock did smell like fire and smoke.  
After a few minutes, Sherlock lifted his head from John's shoulder, his cheeks wet and red from crying. He pulled back a bit.  
"John?" He said, his voice throaty.  
"Sherlock?"  
He looked John in his eyes and gave him a tiny smile. Then Sherlock cupped his large hands carefully around John's face and got his face close to his, his eyes never leaving John's. After a heartbeat he let his lips touch the mouth of the shorter man. Very softly, very cautious, closing his eyes and tried to not let the feelings overwhelm him. And when he pulled back to look John in his eyes, he didn't see any hesitation, only determination.  
John gave him a little smile back, as to comfort him.  
They kissed again. Just as soft and careful as the first time. And when John pulled back, he wrapped his arms tighter around Sherlock. It felt as if he never wanted to let him go again. And that was exactly what Sherlock wanted.

●•●

Together they walked across the graveyard.  
"I told Mycroft."  
"What did he say?"  
"He just snorted. Then I told him he gained weight again."  
John chuckled.  
"You're incorrigible."  
Sherlock grinned back.  
They stopped in front of the fresh headstone in front of them.  
"We owe her so much." John said after a while.  
"We do." Sherlock confirmed, taking John's hand in his own.  
"We wouldn't be here if not for her."  
"I know. She was special, that one."  
"You two fell for each other."  
Sherlock just nodded.  
"And she told you to be happy."  
"She told me to be happy with you. And I am."  
John leaned against his side.  
"She told me to follow my heart."  
"She told me to stop being a coward."  
"Thank god you listened for once."  
Sherlock smiled and kissed the top of John's head. John lifted his head from Sherlock's shoulder. I'm going to see my parents grave. Do I see you there?"  
Sherlock squeezed John's hand in respond, and John walked away, leaving Sherlock behind on his own.  
Sherlock stared at the headstone in front of him. Her name engraved in the black granite.  
He smiled.  
"Thank you, little devil. You gave me more than I would have ever hoped for. I'm living the happy life you wished for me, and I'm grateful for that. You have a special place in my heart, Ava. And I'll cherish you there until the end of my days."  
Sherlock kissed the tip of his fingers and touched the top of the stone with them. Then he turned around and started walking towards the love of his life.


End file.
